Hanson’s throwback set at SXSW

Hanson’s throwback set at SXSW

For those of us who grew up in the 2000’s, Hanson is a household name. It was nearly impossible to go through a week without hearing MMMbop somewhere.

The show was packed from front to back with 30 year old women, wanting to relive their glory days when boy bands were all the rage and Snapchat wasn’t a thing. It was a cutthroat environment, unlike many of the more relaxed shows of the week. If the crowd moved an inch, people made sure to claim every bit of space they could. If you were brave enough to venture out for drinks or to go to the bathroom, you were faced with difficult people and icy stares to get anywhere near your original place. This is understandable, considering most of the crowd had waited over 10 years to see the trio.

There was a bit more competitive air to the show, which hung heavily over attendee’s heads. It created an overwhelming uncomfortable feeling for everyone involved. It was a totally different feeling than any other show, and was definitely the only show that produced a negative feeling before the band began.

Despite the drama in the crowd, the Tulsa natives put on quite a show. The show was filled with throwbacks, which had most of the crowd singing and dancing along. The second that music started playing, tensions were eased and everyone let loose to enjoy the show.

Perhaps I was too young to remember most of the band’s songs, because even though I remember listening to them religiously as a kid, I couldn’t recall most of the songs the band played. This was a problem for most of the younger attendees, it seemed. The problem with being a bit of a one-hit wonder is that no one remembers most of your other songs.

The band sounded great, but it was a little bit of an awkward feeling hearing songs you used to listen to after the artists hit puberty. What made MMMbop so great was the fact that it was sung by 3 dudes that hadn’t hit puberty yet. Otherwise, it’s just adults singing made up words. It’s not so cute to make up your own language when you sound like an actual adult.

Most of the set was okay, but the two highlights of the set were Penny and Me and MMMbop. However, the band made a huge blunder by playing their biggest hit before the last song. If your goal is to keep your audience captive and engaged, you’ve got to keep them waiting for that moment.

The second MMMbop was over and the Snapchat videos loaded, most of the crowd left and made their way to another set. The band debuted new music after their iconic song, but it fell on deaf ears. It was a unique moment to see a boy band from the 2000’s hit the stage in 2017. For the most part, the band still had what it takes to make an audience happy. At any rate, everyone enjoyed screaming nonsense words along with a bunch of strangers.